Where to camp, kayak, see wildlife, and more at Everglades National Park in Florida, just a couple of hours from our Orlando campervan depot!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":53,"featured_media":6846,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[197,9,142,198,200],"tags":[],"blog_locations":[11724],"class_list":["post-6843","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-national-parks","category-renter-guest-posts","category-trip-ideas-guides","category-winter-road-trips","category-women-on-the-road","blog_locations-orlando"],"acf":{"title":"","background_image":{"ID":11655,"id":11655,"title":"Campervan Trip Florida Everglades National Park Entrance","filename":"campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance.jpeg","filesize":126024,"url":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance.jpeg","link":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/de\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-2\/","alt":"Campervan Trip Florida Everglades National Park Camping Entrance","author":"53","description":"","caption":"","name":"campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-2","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":0,"date":"2018-12-07 17:36:51","modified":"2024-07-11 19:16:48","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":867,"height":650,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-150x150.jpeg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-300x225.jpeg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":225,"medium_large":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-768x576.jpeg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":576,"large":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-1024x768.jpeg","large-width":1024,"large-height":768,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance.jpeg","1536x1536-width":867,"1536x1536-height":650,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance.jpeg","2048x2048-width":867,"2048x2048-height":650,"blog-preview":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-600x353.jpeg","blog-preview-width":600,"blog-preview-height":353,"post-thumbnail":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-1200x900.jpeg","post-thumbnail-width":1200,"post-thumbnail-height":900,"gform-image-choice-sm":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance.jpeg","gform-image-choice-sm-width":300,"gform-image-choice-sm-height":225,"gform-image-choice-md":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance.jpeg","gform-image-choice-md-width":400,"gform-image-choice-md-height":300,"gform-image-choice-lg":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance.jpeg","gform-image-choice-lg-width":600,"gform-image-choice-lg-height":450}},"title_color":"dark","add_overlay":[],"content_sections":[{"acf_fc_layout":"text","text":"
If there\u2019s one thing I love, it\u2019s being on the water, and there\u2019s no shortage of water in the Florida Everglades. So, that was the main focus of our trip to Everglades National Park: explore the scenery and find some great paddling spots. And boy, did we ever. Read on for our Campervan Guide to Florida Everglades National Park Camping!<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":11655,"id":11655,"title":"Campervan Trip Florida Everglades National Park Entrance","filename":"campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance.jpeg","filesize":126024,"url":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance.jpeg","link":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/de\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-2\/","alt":"Campervan Trip Florida Everglades National Park Camping Entrance","author":"53","description":"","caption":"","name":"campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-2","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":0,"date":"2018-12-07 17:36:51","modified":"2024-07-11 19:16:48","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":867,"height":650,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-150x150.jpeg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-300x225.jpeg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":225,"medium_large":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-768x576.jpeg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":576,"large":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-1024x768.jpeg","large-width":1024,"large-height":768,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance.jpeg","1536x1536-width":867,"1536x1536-height":650,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance.jpeg","2048x2048-width":867,"2048x2048-height":650,"blog-preview":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-600x353.jpeg","blog-preview-width":600,"blog-preview-height":353,"post-thumbnail":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance-1200x900.jpeg","post-thumbnail-width":1200,"post-thumbnail-height":900,"gform-image-choice-sm":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance.jpeg","gform-image-choice-sm-width":300,"gform-image-choice-sm-height":225,"gform-image-choice-md":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance.jpeg","gform-image-choice-md-width":400,"gform-image-choice-md-height":300,"gform-image-choice-lg":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-national-park-entrance.jpeg","gform-image-choice-lg-width":600,"gform-image-choice-lg-height":450}},"image_link":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"text","text":"
Be forewarned, this place is huge. Not just big. Huge. 1.5 million acres huge. There are three separate entrances into Everglades National Park, and all are a fair distance from each other. So, camping in the Everglades takes at least a little bit of pre-planning. The Homestead entrance is a short 2-hour drive from Orlando<\/a>. We opted for the camper van<\/a> because it piles so many great amenities into the van for us. That left us plenty of brain power to tackle planning the trip and where to camp in the Florida Everglades national park.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":11656,"id":11656,"title":"Campervan Trip Florida Everglades National Park camping","filename":"campervan-trip-florida-everglades.jpeg","filesize":97328,"url":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades.jpeg","link":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/de\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-2\/","alt":"Campervan Trip Florida Everglades National Park Camping","author":"53","description":"","caption":"","name":"campervan-trip-florida-everglades-2","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":0,"date":"2018-12-07 17:37:05","modified":"2020-09-28 10:16:38","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":866,"height":650,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-150x150.jpeg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-300x225.jpeg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":225,"medium_large":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-768x576.jpeg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":576,"large":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-1024x768.jpeg","large-width":1024,"large-height":768,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades.jpeg","1536x1536-width":866,"1536x1536-height":650,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades.jpeg","2048x2048-width":866,"2048x2048-height":650,"blog-preview":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-600x353.jpeg","blog-preview-width":600,"blog-preview-height":353,"post-thumbnail":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades-1200x900.jpeg","post-thumbnail-width":1200,"post-thumbnail-height":900,"gform-image-choice-sm":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades.jpeg","gform-image-choice-sm-width":300,"gform-image-choice-sm-height":225,"gform-image-choice-md":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades.jpeg","gform-image-choice-md-width":400,"gform-image-choice-md-height":300,"gform-image-choice-lg":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/campervan-trip-florida-everglades.jpeg","gform-image-choice-lg-width":600,"gform-image-choice-lg-height":450}},"image_link":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"text","text":" From there we decided to head to the Flamingo Campground. The Flamingo campground is a solid hour drive from the park\u2019s main gate. Flamingo is literally as far south as you can go. You\u2019re at the southernmost tip of mainland Florida, so of course, that\u2019s where we headed. Due to the recent hurricanes, amenities are pretty scarce, so gas up and hit a grocery store before heading into the park. Thankfully, the Escape Campervan had a fridge that we could stock up after hitting the grocery stores to prepare for our adventure into the Florida Everglades for camping.<\/p>\n What you\u2019re lacking in fancy amenities, you make up for in wildlife, nature, scenery, and solitude. You feel like you\u2019re at the end of the world because you pretty much are. It\u2019s awesome.<\/p>\n The campground was relatively empty as their off-season is just beginning. We got a spot with a gorgeous water view looking out over the Florida Bay. Campsites had just switched that week to first-come, first-served, but other times of the year reservations are mandatory.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":11658,"id":11658,"title":"Kayaking Everglades National Park Florida","filename":"kayaking-florida-everglades-national-park.jpeg","filesize":75856,"url":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-florida-everglades-national-park.jpeg","link":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/de\/kayaking-florida-everglades-national-park-2\/","alt":"Kayaking Florida Everglades Camping","author":"53","description":"","caption":"","name":"kayaking-florida-everglades-national-park-2","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":0,"date":"2018-12-07 17:37:38","modified":"2020-09-28 10:16:21","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":905,"height":650,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-florida-everglades-national-park-150x150.jpeg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-florida-everglades-national-park-300x215.jpeg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":215,"medium_large":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-florida-everglades-national-park-768x551.jpeg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":551,"large":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-florida-everglades-national-park-1024x735.jpeg","large-width":1024,"large-height":735,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-florida-everglades-national-park.jpeg","1536x1536-width":905,"1536x1536-height":650,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-florida-everglades-national-park.jpeg","2048x2048-width":905,"2048x2048-height":650,"blog-preview":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-florida-everglades-national-park-600x353.jpeg","blog-preview-width":600,"blog-preview-height":353,"post-thumbnail":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-florida-everglades-national-park-1200x861.jpeg","post-thumbnail-width":1200,"post-thumbnail-height":861,"gform-image-choice-sm":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-florida-everglades-national-park.jpeg","gform-image-choice-sm-width":300,"gform-image-choice-sm-height":215,"gform-image-choice-md":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-florida-everglades-national-park.jpeg","gform-image-choice-md-width":400,"gform-image-choice-md-height":287,"gform-image-choice-lg":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-florida-everglades-national-park.jpeg","gform-image-choice-lg-width":600,"gform-image-choice-lg-height":431}},"image_link":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"text","text":" The next morning, we decided to change the scenery for breakfast, so we backtracked (on the one road in and one road out) and found the perfect spot at West Lake. There was no one there but us and the birds. With a space as vast as the Everglades, we wanted to take full advantage of being mobile.<\/p>\n After breakfast, it was off to the Flamingo boat ramp for the main event, kayaking. Renting a kayak was super-easy. It\u2019s first-come, first-served. So, we were on the water in our kayaks in less than 10 minutes.<\/p>\n We took off along a channel that led to Coot Bay for approximately two miles then came back. Along the way, we saw what you\u2019d expect to see in the Everglades: alligators! Twelve total that we counted. Twelve! Way to show off for us, Everglades!<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":11657,"id":11657,"title":"Kayaking Everglades National Park Florida","filename":"kayaking-everglades-national-park-selfie.jpeg","filesize":73677,"url":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-everglades-national-park-selfie.jpeg","link":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/de\/kayaking-everglades-national-park-selfie-2\/","alt":"Kayaking Everglades National Park Florida Camping","author":"53","description":"","caption":"","name":"kayaking-everglades-national-park-selfie-2","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":0,"date":"2018-12-07 17:37:22","modified":"2020-09-28 10:16:28","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":867,"height":650,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-everglades-national-park-selfie-150x150.jpeg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-everglades-national-park-selfie-300x225.jpeg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":225,"medium_large":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-everglades-national-park-selfie-768x576.jpeg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":576,"large":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-everglades-national-park-selfie-1024x768.jpeg","large-width":1024,"large-height":768,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-everglades-national-park-selfie.jpeg","1536x1536-width":867,"1536x1536-height":650,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-everglades-national-park-selfie.jpeg","2048x2048-width":867,"2048x2048-height":650,"blog-preview":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-everglades-national-park-selfie-600x353.jpeg","blog-preview-width":600,"blog-preview-height":353,"post-thumbnail":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-everglades-national-park-selfie-1200x900.jpeg","post-thumbnail-width":1200,"post-thumbnail-height":900,"gform-image-choice-sm":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-everglades-national-park-selfie.jpeg","gform-image-choice-sm-width":300,"gform-image-choice-sm-height":225,"gform-image-choice-md":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-everglades-national-park-selfie.jpeg","gform-image-choice-md-width":400,"gform-image-choice-md-height":300,"gform-image-choice-lg":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/kayaking-everglades-national-park-selfie.jpeg","gform-image-choice-lg-width":600,"gform-image-choice-lg-height":450}},"image_link":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"text","text":" These alligators didn\u2019t waste any time showing up on our paddle. We expected to see them, but not 2 minutes into our trip. I cruised right by the first one without even registering him, but my friend Christina (in a shaky voice) just said: \u201cUh, Katy?\u201d And there he was.<\/p>\n As long as we stayed in the center of the channel, we weren\u2019t terribly concerned. The gators didn\u2019t seem to care about us, so we kept it mutual. At the end of our paddle, we were treated to approximately 6 manatee swimming in the marina. That, for me, was the cherry on top of a pretty spectacular morning of paddling.<\/p>\n Heading down to the Everglades was like discovering a different world, one that I now can\u2019t wait to get back to. In hindsight, I wish we had budgeted more time to spend, but now we\u2019ll just have to start planning round two. Gator paddling 2.0, here we come!<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":11659,"id":11659,"title":"Sunset Florida Everglades","filename":"sunset-florida-everglades.jpeg","filesize":42203,"url":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/sunset-florida-everglades.jpeg","link":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/de\/sunset-florida-everglades-2\/","alt":"Sunset Florida Everglades Camping","author":"53","description":"","caption":"","name":"sunset-florida-everglades-2","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":0,"date":"2018-12-07 17:37:53","modified":"2020-09-28 10:17:02","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":867,"height":650,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/sunset-florida-everglades-150x150.jpeg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/sunset-florida-everglades-300x225.jpeg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":225,"medium_large":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/sunset-florida-everglades-768x576.jpeg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":576,"large":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/sunset-florida-everglades-1024x768.jpeg","large-width":1024,"large-height":768,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/sunset-florida-everglades.jpeg","1536x1536-width":867,"1536x1536-height":650,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/sunset-florida-everglades.jpeg","2048x2048-width":867,"2048x2048-height":650,"blog-preview":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/sunset-florida-everglades-600x353.jpeg","blog-preview-width":600,"blog-preview-height":353,"post-thumbnail":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/sunset-florida-everglades-1200x900.jpeg","post-thumbnail-width":1200,"post-thumbnail-height":900,"gform-image-choice-sm":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/sunset-florida-everglades.jpeg","gform-image-choice-sm-width":300,"gform-image-choice-sm-height":225,"gform-image-choice-md":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/sunset-florida-everglades.jpeg","gform-image-choice-md-width":400,"gform-image-choice-md-height":300,"gform-image-choice-lg":"https:\/\/escapecampervans.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/sunset-florida-everglades.jpeg","gform-image-choice-lg-width":600,"gform-image-choice-lg-height":450}},"image_link":""}],"sub_title":"","title_tag":false,"override_global_post_advertising":"no"},"yoast_head":"\nWhere to Camp in the Florida Everglades National Park<\/h2>\n
Kayaking & Wildlife, Our Favorite Part of Florida Everglades National Park Camping<\/h2>\n